The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1887-11-24
WHALING ADVENTURES.
Perfls Encoun te red by Mariners In Cap
turing the Leviathan.

ForiS EucOun te reu Dy martnerS In
turing the Leviathan.
Every summer the Polar Sea, off the
coast of Finmarken. Norway. is alive
with whales and their chasers. The
principal game of the Norwegian
whalers is the great blue WI ale, attain
ing length of some ninety to one
hundred feet This MANN ota champion
of the Polar Ocean possesses immense
strength. and the whaler's tackle"
must necessarily be pretty solid.
When killed the whale sinks to the bot
tom, and the captor is apt to lose his
game. To prevent this Mr.. Svend
Foyn, the pioneer of the whaling in
dustry. has invented a new harpoon
whereto is affixed q self-exploding
bomb filled with a gas-producing com q.
position. When the whale is har-
pooned the bomb buried in the flesh of
the animal explodes, and the gas pro-
duced permeating the veins and cav
tiles of the leviathan prevents him
from sinking.
How perilous and hazardous whal-
ing is. even with the most perfect of
appliances and weapons. is well illus
trated by the following narration re-
lated by an eyewitness:
at was June day, with rough
weather, rougher even than usual on a
summer day ut Vartlo. The little fleet
of small, yet strong, W haling steamers
must try their luck, however, and of
they 60 in the early m orning. steering
to and fro, battling with the high sea.
To no avail. Not whale was to be
seen anywhere, and the sea increasing.
and the wind developing almost into
storm, they turned and steamed home
ward one after a mother, all but one.
He must try Il little further. The waves
tossed the plucky craft like n shell; the
harpooncr on watch must take care not
to be thrown hea dforemost into the
frothing waters. Yet no whale; moth
ing to be seen or heard but the white
mountains and dumb thunder of the
rolling waves and the shrill whining of
the storm through the steamer. The
captain at last found the search fruit
less, and turned homeward. The YES
sci arriving at the mouth of the harbor.
big whale sho up its front, almost
touching the bow of the steamer. The
harpooner, surprised at first, was, how
ever, up to his busin eSs. A flash. Il roar.
and in the very moment the har-
pooh was buried to the handle in
the big whale. But. strange, the
bomb didn't explode, and the animal,
suffering intense agonies, shot out to
sea, towing the steamer after him.
Against the towerin g waves, against
the raging storm, the whaler went with
lightning speed, tho ugh its engine was
reversed. For eight miles the terrible
race went on. only the masts and the
chimney of the steamer in the mean
time being visible above the waters.
The vessel was strong, however, anG
the crew tried men. who did not propose
to let 90.
But what's that? A fishing boat
w it'll its keel upmost. and two men
clingi ng for life to the wreck! To cut
the line and save the men was the har-
pooner's first thought. Then we will
lose the whale, the line and the harpoOn,
thousan nd of crowns worth, was his
second. 1t must soon be done. and in
few minutes we can be bnck and save
the men, was his conclusion and on the
vessel went. Halo, there, what is up?
The line burst, the whale sank out of
sight. the steamer tossing aimless on
the rolling waves. There was nothing
more to do. The captive was free, sink
ing slowly to the botrom to die. But
two human lives were saved, and the
whalers considered themselves richly
rewarded for their terrible race and the
loss of their game as well. Cor. Min
neapoItS Journal.